 France Miniature, seen from the eastern side of the park. | |
| Location | Élancourt, France |
|---|---|
| Status | Operating |
| Opened | 1991 |
| Area | 12 acres |
France Miniature is a miniature park tourist attraction in Élancourt, France featuring scale models of major French landmarks and monuments in an outdoor park.
France Miniature is a 5-hectare (12-acre) outdoor park in the shape of France that contains about 160 outdoor 1/30-scale models of major French monuments and landmarks. Monuments are placed in the park to correlate approximately with their real-world locations in France. Many of the models are animated, and all of the country's best known landmarks are represented (the Eiffel Tower, Versailles, Lourdes, etc.). A system of model trains runs through the park, and animated boats ply the "Atlantic Ocean" and the "Mediterranean Sea" (lagoons positioned appropriately around the perimeter of the park). Visitors walk along paved paths to visit the various models.
An indoor exhibition features extremely detailed models of several indoor scenes.
The park is closed during the winter.
France Miniature is owned by the same group (Grévin & Cie., now part of Compagnie des Alpes) that operates the Parc Astérix amusement park north of Paris.
A scale model is a physical model which is geometrically similar to an object. Scale models are generally smaller than large prototypes such as vehicles, buildings, or people; but may be larger than small prototypes such as anatomical structures or subatomic particles. Models built to the same scale as the prototype are called mockups.
The Carolwood Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a 7+1⁄4-inch gauge ridable miniature railroad run by Walt Disney in the backyard of his home in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It featured the Lilly Belle, a 1:8-scale live steam locomotive named after Disney's wife, Lillian Disney, and built by the Walt Disney Studios' machine shop. The locomotive made its first test run on December 24, 1949. It pulled a set of freight cars, as well as a caboose that was almost entirely built by Disney himself. It was Disney's lifelong fascination with trains, as well as his interest in miniature models, that led to the creation of the CPRR. The railroad, which became operational in 1950, was 2,615 feet (797 m) long and encircled his house. The backyard railroad attracted visitors to Disney's home; he invited them to ride and occasionally drive his miniature train. In 1953, after an accident occurred in which a guest was injured, the CPRR was closed to the public.
A garden railway or garden railroad is a model railway system set up outdoors in a garden. While G is the most popular scale for garden railroads, 16 mm scale has a dedicated and growing following especially in the UK. Model locomotives in this scale are often live steam scale models of British narrow gauge prototypes. 16 mm scale track, the same gauge as O gauge is probably now more popular in the UK than G scale.
Live steam is steam under pressure, obtained by heating water in a boiler. The steam may be used to operate stationary or moving equipment.
A family entertainment center, often abbreviated FEC in the entertainment industry, also known as an indoor amusement park, family amusement center, family fun center, soft play, or simply fun center, is a small amusement park marketed towards families with small children to teenagers, often entirely indoors. They usually cater to "sub-regional markets of larger metropolitan areas." FECs are generally small compared to full-scale amusement parks, with fewer attractions, a lower per-person per-hour cost to consumers than a traditional amusement park, and not usually major tourist attractions, but sustained by an area customer base. Many are locally owned and operated, although there are a number of chains and franchises in the field. Some, operated by non-profit organizations as children's museum or science museums, tend to be geared toward edutainment experiences rather than simply amusement.
A backyard railroad is a privately owned, outdoor railroad, most often in miniature, but large enough for one or several persons to ride on. The rail gauge can be anything from 2+1⁄2 in to 7+1⁄2 in or more. Smaller backyard or outdoor railroads that cannot be ridden are called garden railroads. Some backyard railroads use full-size rolling stock, such as the former 3 ft narrow gauge Grizzly Flats Railroad owned by railfan and Disney animator Ward Kimball.
A miniature park is a display of miniature buildings and models, usually as a recreational and tourist attraction open to the public. A miniature park may contain a model of a single city or town, often called a miniature city or model village, or it can contain a number of different sets of models.
Élancourt is a commune in the Yvelines department, and the Île-de-France region, north central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, 30.6 km (19.0 mi) from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines.
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